Mara Palermo is moving on up

D'Amore owner begins at Barton Hill Hotel & Spa on April
1

by Joshua Maloni

Owning a
business is fun ... if you enjoy owning a business.

For six years, Mara Palermo has owned and operated
her own salon, D'Amore, from the second floor of 705 Center St. So, in addition
to styling hair, offering body treatments, skin care, waxing, nail services,
pedicures, makeup treatments, message therapy and eyebrow threading, Palermo
had to hire and maintain a staff, manage the books, promote the products and
keep everyone's customers happy.

Phew.

Well, now,
she's decided to scale back and just concentrate on hair. Namely, her
customers' locks, which she'll cut, color, highlight and style at the Barton
Hill Hotel & Spa. Palermo has opted out of D'Amore, and will begin working
at the luxury Lewiston inn on April 1.

"It was
something I wanted to do," Palermo said.

She said she's
looking forward to "the change."

"I'm very much
excited to do something different," Palermo said. "I wanted to be able to cater
to my clients"

She described
her new digs as more of an intimate boutique.

"Ultimately, I
like being with my clients," Palermo said. "I like the one-on-one."